Speculations
by TheLightIsMine
Summary: Ordo sighed and looked over at Mereel. As far as he was concerned, they were just scratches. But Jaing and A'den seemed peculiarly fascinated by them. The Null ARCS have some downtime in the gym, and Mereel has new scars to show off from what looks like an adventurous night out...


**Speculations**

"My guess is it's a Zygerrian."

"Don't be such a _di'kut_. It's probably a Farghul."

"I thought they were xenophobic?"

"True, but Mereel's such an _or'dinii_ he could probably get round one of them."

Jaing chuckled to himself, bringing the treadmill to a slow stop before stepping off and wiping his face with the towel his brother had just handed him. A'den had a point, in some respects; Mereel didn't exactly call himself a swinger, but there was no doubt he was the most adventurous of their family. And he had new scars to show for it.

Sipping his water, A'den smiled and tilted his head, trying to get a better look. "You know, I think it could be a Cathar. Or one of their more near-human subspecies. They're pretty deep."

Jaing made a non-committal noise. "Could just as easily be a Zygerrian, like I said."

"Maybe, but I didn't think they were Mereel's type. Too primitive."

"I never knew that to stop him before." Jaing laughed. Mereel's stories were almost unbelievable at times, at others simply amusing. But never boring. No, never boring. Mereel seemed to take pride in the fact that he had done these outrageous things – though whether or not he had actually done them was another matter entirely. In all honesty, it wouldn't surprise them if he had.

Ordo, who was lifting weights nearby, rolled his eyes and put down the equipment, reaching for his bottle of water. "What are you two _di'kuts _on about now?"

A'den, arms folded, leaning against a treadmill, nodded his head towards Mereel, who's bare back was facing them. He grinned.

Ordo looked over to Mereel and sighed. As far as he was concerned, they were just scratches. But by the looks on Jaing and A'den's faces, there was something he was missing. They seemed peculiarly fascinated with them.

Jaing, who was sitting on the treadmill he had previously been running on, gave Ordo a sly grin. "Mereel's been a busy man."

Ordo looked again. The scratches were quite visible, not deep, long gashes like those from a vibroblade, but not shallow enough to be from some sort of rough material. It looked as though someone had drawn their hands down his back, from the top of his shoulder blade down to his bottom ribs, where they curved out a little. Whoever had done it had had sharp nails, that was for sure, and they couldn't have been human.

Ordo sighed, mildly exasperated. "Who do you suppose he got in a fight with this time?"

Jaing and A'den exchanged knowing glances. "I don't think 'fight' is the right word, _ner vod_..." Jaing looked again, mimicking A'den's earlier action of tilting his head in curiosity.

Ordo knew he wasn't as socially aware as his brothers. So the fact that they both seemed to think he was missing something usually meant he was. Lying back on the bench, he put his clasped hands on his forehead and exhaled slowly.

"Mereel's business is Mereel's business, _vode_. Let him do what he wants."

Jaing ignored this remark. "So who do you think it is?"

"Like I said, it's probably a Cathar."

"Ha! That's a joke. I told you, it's more likely to be a Zygerrian. Or even a desperate Theelin."

Something clicked in Ordo's mind. He cringed inwardly at his earlier naïvety. If his _vode _had been more explanatory, he might have saved himself from sounding like a complete idiot, as they now obviously thought he was. Though he was impressed he had caught on so quickly. It usually took him a lot longer.

"Or a Twi'lek." He sighed.

Jaing and A'den looked at him. "Twi'lek? Why do you say that?"

Ordo sat up again, taking another sip from his water. "Twi'leks have sharp nails. And they're considered extremely attractive. So...a Twi'lek."

Jaing and A'den looked at him, then at each other.

"I suppose that makes sense." Jaing shrugged.

A'den nodded. "I guess it does." He cleared his throat.

There was a moment of silence, in which Ordo revelled in having had the simple knowledge to defeat his brothers in their guessing game. He grinned at them, and they grinned back, sharing the moment of embarrassment and idiocy. Ordo looked around the gym. It was basically empty, aside from him, his brothers and a couple of early rising troops. The four of them had decided to get together here before heading over to Laseema's; a bit of time just working out together before the hectic schedule of their lives took over once again. Kom'rk would be arriving back from Utapau with Prudii as they spoke, and it was always good to just forget about the war for an hour or so, forget about how their brothers could be dead tomorrow, or the next day. It was good to forget.

"I wonder what marks Atin's got hiding under _his_ armour then?" A'den grinned, ready to start a fresh topic of gossip. Ordo decided to ignore the jibe, tuning out as Jaing chuckled loudly and said something about locked doors and watching the quiet ones. He _really_ didn't want to think about_ that_.

Mereel was sliding back and forth on the rowing machine, the muscles in his bare back rippling with each pull, dripping with sweat from continuous exercise. Looking again, Ordo found himself wondering what exactly had happened to him last night...but recalling Mereel's answers to their curious questions and the tales he told them, Ordo quickly decided he didn't want to know.

Looking at the holo, Ordo nodded at his brothers. It was about time they should be getting back to Laseema's; _Kal'buir _had organised a meeting, the whole _aliit_. "Time to go, _vode_."

They nodded in synchronisation. Jaing took his towel and threw it at Mereel's head with a grin. "_Oya,_ _ner vod_!"

Mereel stopped rowing and picked up the towel, wiping his face and shoulders with it. Breezing by Jaing to pick up his bag, he grinned.

"Desperate Theelin my _shebs_."

At the look of Jaing and A'den's faces, Ordo roared with laughter.

**Finis**

* * *

><p><em>More Null ARC love. :) Gods, I love them. Mereel especially.<em>

di'kut_ = idiot, stupid person, used affectionately here  
><em>or'dinii_ = complete lunatic  
><em>ner vod_ = my brother  
><em>vode_ = brothers  
><em>Kal'buir_ = papa Kal, father Kal  
><em>aliit_ = clan, family  
><em>shebs_ = rear  
><em>oya_ = let's hunt, let's roll_

_Thanks so much for reading. I'd appreciate a review, if you can manage it. :) Also, I always have a poll on my profile, so a vote might be nice too._

_I know Kom'rk and Prudii don't appear...but thinking in my head, A'den's the gossip and Jaing's "The galaxy's gift to women. The best data slicer this side of…well, anywhere. Financial genius and all-around modest _ori'beskaryc vod_.", in his words. XD I don't own that, by the way, it's from _Imperial Commando: 501st, _written by Karen Traviss. I don't own theses characters either. Unfortunately. They also belong to her. Lucky woman. :P So yeah, I used them because they fit personality-wise, and come on – how can you have a RepCom fic without Ordo? :D I love Kom'rk and Prudii just as much as the others, I swear._

_My first shot at __something which resembles _comedy, really...let me know how it turned out. :)__

_Hwyl a diolch yn fawr,_

_~Light x_

_UPDATE: Added an Atin/Laseema reference...'cause it was nagging at me. ;) Thanks for the hint,_ **Queen**_._


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